


Ghost of You

by scorbusrights



Category: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-18
Updated: 2019-09-28
Packaged: 2020-10-21 08:00:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20690150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scorbusrights/pseuds/scorbusrights
Summary: The first few years at Hogwarts had been rough on Albus and Scorpius. They had experienced things, seen things, felt things that no teenager should ever experience, see and feel.But here they were and somehow they would have to deal with it. But dealing with it is easier said than done especially when you're the centre of attention.. everywhere you go.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> After writing my short story, I decided to turn the story into a multichapter story. I realised I really love writing more about how Albus and Scorpius are dealing with all events that happened during their first years at Hogwarts. Hopefully focusing some more on how Albus is dealing with all of it as he's become one of my absolute favorite characters, so I hope I do him justice. I want to be uploading new chapters frequently and as soon as possible. I really hope you all enjoy this multichapter story.

_'You'll have to use Imperio. You'll have to control me,' Albus said through gritted teeth, his back up straight and chin up high._

_'No. To fulfil the prophecy, this has to be you, not a puppet of you... You have to be the one to humiliate Cedric, so Imperio just won't do - I'll have to force you by other means.' Delphi takes out her wand. She points it to Albus who sticks his chin out._

_'Do your worst,' he says, readying himself for the hit of one of her spells. Ready to take it in. He would rather suffer from this than help her fulfil the prophecy and bring back Voldemort._

_'I will,' she grins at Albus while locking her eyes onto him, but her wand moves._

_'No!' Albus yells as he sees her wand pointing at Scorpius who's standing not far away from him._

_'Yes, as I thought - this seems to frighten you more,' in her eyes he can see the joy this brings her, seeing Albus struggle._

_He doesn't want Scorpius to get hurt. But he also knows he can't help Delphi, but Scorpius-_

_'Albus,' he calls out to his boyfriend. 'Whatever she does to me - we can't let her-' but he's interupted by Delphi's voice screaming out the Cruciatus Curse. Scorpius yells out in pain._

_'I will...' Albus grits through his teeth, but Delphi's laughter cuts of his sentence._

_'What? What on earth do you think you can do? A wizardwide dissapointment? A sore on your family name? A spare? You want to stop me hurting your frined? Then do what your told.'_

_She looks at Albus as Scorpius falls to the ground. His breathing heavy, unable to get any words out. But Albus stays resistant._

_'No? Crucio!' she screams again._

_Albus screams as Scorpius lets out an agonizing scream. His body twitches and his back curves as he tries to take the pain, but it's too much to bare. He didn't want to scream, he didn't want Albus to break. They had to be strong. But Albus forgot all about staying strong as soon as he looked at his boyfriend who was screaming out in agony._

Albus sits up straight in his bed, looking around as another scream fills the dorm room. All the boys are still downstairs, celebrating the Quidditch win of earlier that afternoon. Slytherin - Ravenclaw.  
He looks over to Scorpius' bed and sees the curtain facing Albus' bed still open. His body is trashing around in his bed and his breathing is heavy. Just like- Albus throws his blanket off and jumps out of his bed. The book that was laying on his chest falls to the ground with a loud thud but he jumps over it. He had tried to stay awake, but he must have dozed off while reading his Herbology homework.

'Scorpius,' Albus whispers as he quickly walks over to his boyfriend's bed. 'Hey, hey, you're fine. You're fine,' he hushes as Scorpius fights his way out of his blanket, his wild eyes looking through their dorm room. Looking for something or someone. Albus knew exactly who he was looking for, who was haunting the boy in his sleep. Because she was haunting him too. _Delphi_.

'Albus?' his voice sounds raspy as if he had been screaming all day long.

'Yes, it's me. I'm right here,' he forces a smile on his face as Scorpius' eyes lock onto him. 'I'm here and we're alone. You're safe.' Albus pushes a lock of hair out of Scorpius' face and cups his face with both hands. 'You had a nightmare.'

Scorpius lays his hands over Albus' as he closes his eyes and leans into his touch.

'I'm so sorry to have woken you up,' Scorpius says, pressing his lips in a fine line.

'Scoot over,' Albus says and Scorpius makes place for him to lay down next to him. He climbs into Scorpius' bed and closes the curtains of the bed. 'Come here.'

The bed is definitely not made for two people but somehow Scorpius and Albus always make it work. They fit, like two puzzle pieces. They pull the blankets on top of them as Scorpius wraps his arm around Albus' waist and lays his head down on his chest. Albus feels the boy trembling as he presses himself against him, as close as possible, trying to find some comfort in his presence and body warmth. Albus holds him close as he gently strokes Scorpius hair, trying to calm him down. 'You're safe,' he whispers again. He looks up at the roof of the bed, wishing he could make the nightmares go away. Not just Scorpius' but his own as well.

'Albus?' Scorpius soft voice sounds and Albus looks down at him. 'Will you please stay here? With me?'

'Of course I will,' he replies as he presses a kiss to the top of his blonde hair. 'I'm not leaving. Just try and get some more sleep. I'll be right here.'

Albus listens as Scorpius' breathing slows down and grows even as he falls back asleep. After a while he can hear the other boys come in, talking about the Quidditch match in hushed voices, trying to be quiet for Albus and Scorpius. Most of the time the two boyfriends would already be up in their dorm room, when everyone was still down in the common room. No one really talked to them so they would just go up to their room and cuddle, talk and read when they weren't doing any homework. After a while the boys grew quiet and their breathing fell in line with Scorpius' which meant they were asleep. But not Albus. He let out a sigh as he rubbed his face with his free hand. Albus hadn't had a good night sleep in weeks. At first he thought he'd be able to pick up his school life after everything that had happened. He'd gone to every class and had done all the homework while hanging with Scorpius in the free time they had. He'd been avoiding everyone else but it was alright. Until the nightmares began. All the memories came back to him, to haunt him and it had been running around in his head ever since. After a while he gave up on trying to get a full night sleep, too scared to fall asleep and being pulled back into the nightmares of those horrible weeks. But then there were nights that he just wouldn't sleep at all.

Scorpius was having nightmares as well. As Albus lay awake most of the night he'd hear his boyfriend toss and turn in his bed. Murmuring things, most of the times Albus' name or his dad's, and waking up screaming. He'd always immediately rush over to calm him down, to comfort him and rock him back to sleep. Then he'd keep watch, to make sure nothing happened to the tall blond boy sleeping in his arms. To make sure he was fine and getting the rest he needed. Scorpius being okay was enough for Albus. It was all he needed.

* * *

'Have you slept at all?' Scorpius voice caused Albus to drop his book. 'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you.'

'It's okay,' Albus said and he looked down at his boyfriend, a smile on his face. 'I tried to sleep, but you were snoring way too loudly next to my ear.'

Scorpius' mouth dropped open as he pulled himself up on his elbow. 'I do not snore, Albus Severus Potter. I have never snored in my entire life.'

'How do you know that for certain if you are **asleep**?' he raises his eyebrows and a frown appears on Scorpius' face. 'I'm just messing with you.' Albus grabs the collar of Scorpius' pyjama and pulls him down toward him. He wraps his arms around him as Scorpius gazes up at Albus.

'I wish I could wake up like this every morning,' he whispers as he traces a line with his indexfinger from Albus' forehead, to the tip of his nose then tracing the form of his lips.

'I'm not sure if my back would survive laying in this small bed with you every night,' Albus jokingly says and presses a kiss to the tip of his finger.

Scorpius pulls himself up again. Placing his legs on either side of Albus' body, looking down on his raven-haired boyfriend who's looking right back up at him with his brown eyes. Eyes he can never get enough of. But the dark circles under his eyes are getting more visible with every night that passes. Gently he brushes the tips of his fingers over Albus' cheek and the dark circles under his eyes.

'You look really tired, Al,' he whispers softly. Albus can see the worry in his eyes and he makes a waving gesture with his hands, trying to wave that worry away. 'When is the last time you've had a good night of sleep?'

Albus shrugs and looks at the curtain on his left, avoiding eye contact. Scorpius pushes a strand of hair out of Albus' face as he caresses his cheeks. 'You need to take care of yourself. You need to rest. You deserve some rest.'

Albus sighs as he looks back at Scorpius again. 'I'll feel much better if you would just kiss me.'

Scorpius giggles and shakes his head. 'You're impossible.' He bends forward and nuzzles his nose in the crook of Albus' neck. His blond hair tickles Albus' face as he places soft, little kisses from his neck to his ear. 'I will kiss you,' he says, his warm breath giving Albus goosebumps. 'But first I'm going to brush my teeth.'

He gets up from the bed and opens the curtains, letting in some of the sunlight shining through one of the windows. Albus lets himself fall back into Scorpius' pillow as his boyfriend leaves to get ready for the day. He rubs his eyes and lets out a deep sigh. He has no idea how to face another day on barely any sleep. Forcing a smile out for Scorpius had been hard, let alone fight himself through a whole day of classes.

'Pull yourself together, Albus,' he grunts as he swings his legs off the bed. 'After all this is your own fault.'


	2. Disconnected

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How did the last chapter end? 
> 
> Scorpius giggles and shakes his head. 'You're impossible.' He bends forward and nuzzles his nose in the crook of Albus' neck. His blond hair tickles Albus' face as he places soft, little kisses from his neck to his cheek, ending at his ear. 'I will kiss you,' he says, his warm breath on Albus' skin gives him goosebumps. 'But first I'm going to brush my teeth.' 
> 
> He gets up from the bed and opens the curtains, letting in some of the sunlight shining through one of the windows. Albus lets himself fall back into Scorpius' pillow as his boyfriend leaves to get ready for the day. He rubs his eyes and lets out a deep sigh. He has no idea how to face another day on barely any sleep. Forcing a smile out for Scorpius had been hard, let alone fight himself through a whole day of classes. 'Pull yourself together, Albus,' he grunts as he swings his legs off the bed. 'After all this is your own fault.'

Albus sits down next to Scorpius at the Slytherin table in the Great Hall. He yawns as he grabs some toast and puts it on his plate. Next to him Scorpius is loading his plate full of eggs, toast, bacon and all sorts of small breakfast muffins.

'I'm not sure whether to admire you for being able to eat so much in the morning or to be disgusted by it,' Albus mumbles as he takes a bite of his toast.

Scorpius grins as he swallows his eggs. 'I have a big appetite and I'm going to have to eat enough to be able to get through the day. How else am I going to be able to tolerate you?' He giggles as Albus turns his body towards him, his eyebrows raised and his mouth agape. 'I'm just kidding,' he says as he puts down his spoon and winks at Albus.

Albus giggles before turning back to the toast on his plate. He pushes it around while taking small bites out of it from time to time, but he doesn't have a real appetite. A small sigh escapes his lips as he looks around the Great Hall at the Gryffindor table. He looks for his brother, but he's nowhere to be seen. James had always been the last one to join for breakfast at home and sometimes he didn't eat breakfast at all, but Albus wouldn't know if he did at school. He has been avoiding James ever since they've come back to Hogwarts. Rose catches his eye and she smiles, giving him a little wave. But he doesn't return it, instead he looks back at his plate. Just like with James, he has been ignoring Rose. She tried talking to him a few times after everything that happened. But he didn't want to talk to her. Ever since the First year of Hogwarts, the moment he chose to stay with Scorpius and the moment he was sorted into Slytherin, she had made it clear that she didn't want to be seen around Albus. She would pretend to like him and that she could get along with him in front of their parents, but as soon as they got on the train, she'd disappear. At first he didn't really bother or care about it, but as he grew lonelier, he started noticing that besides Scorpius and Lily now and then, he had no one. Rose and him used to get along pretty well when they were children but ever since they had arrived at Hogwarts, she'd been different. Trying to prove herself and Albus.. Albus just got in the way of her brilliance and her quest to be the best students possible.

'Albus!' Scorpius voice brought him back to reality and he looked up. 'I have been talking to you for a few minutes now. Have you actually heard anything that I've said?'

He shakes his head. 'I'm sorry, Scor. I didn't. I think I just zoned out, lost in my thoughts.'

Scorpius sighs as he puts down his cutlery, his plate completely empty. 'I do know I talk a lot, believe me, I do. But you've been so distracted lately, Albus. Sometimes you don't even hear me talking and you'll just be staring at nothing, your eyes distant and I have to call out your name multiple times before you seem to break out of it.'

'I'm so sorry. I don't mean to,' Albus says as he pushes his plate away and turns towards Scorpius, he slowly takes his hand and squeezes. 'Please tell me what you were just saying and I promise I will listen.' His eyes catch sight of his older brother walking into the Great Hall. He looks around until his eyes find Albus sitting at the Slytherin table, walking towards him. Albus' breath catches in his throat as he jumps up from the table. 'I need to make a quick stop at the restroom before our first class, tell it to me on our way, okay?'

Scorpius looks confused as he gets up and manages to grab his bag before Albus pulls him along with him. James follows Albus with his eyes.

'Albus!' his brother calls out to him from the other side of the table, but Albus doesn't stop. He doesn't look up and pretends to not have heard his brother call out to him just now.

'Albus, James was calling for you. I think he wants to talk to you,' Scorpius says, but Albus doesn't slow down until they're out of the Great Hall. 'Albus!' Scorpius stops walking and jerks Albus back. 'What is wrong with you?'

Albus turns around. 'Nothing!' he says, louder than he intended to. 'Nothing is wrong with me,' he continues in a softer voice.

'Your brother wants to talk to you. He's asked for you a few times.'

'He's asked you about me?' Albus raises his eyebrows mockingly. 'Why would he ask you about me when he doesn't even talk to me?'

'Because you've been avoiding and ignoring him for weeks now. Every time he steps into the Great Hall, you don't know how fast to get up and leave. As well as when we see him in the hallways, you just take a turn and either walk the other way or walk into another hallway. You're the one that's not talking to him Albus, not the other way around.'

Albus takes a deep breath and crosses his arms in front of his body as if he's trying to protect himself from what Scorpius is saying. Scorpius sighs as he reaches out to put his hands on Albus' arms, but he takes a step back. Albus has his eyes focused on the ground while Scorpius' eyes are searching Albus' face, to try and understand what he's going through, but he doesn't give anything away. He just looks really tired.

'I'm sorry, Albus.'

Albus shakes his head as he looks up again. 'I know you're right,' he whispers. 'But I just do not know what to say to James. All these years he has just been teasing me and making jokes and I'm not sure if he knows how badly they got to me because I was in a bad headspace already. I just don't know if I can talk to him at all. Everyone has always loved him and he's always been so different from me. He's so chill and always keeps a cool head no matter what happens whereas I am anxious and nervous all of the time and always think the worst. I'm afraid he's just going to laugh it off as he always does. I'm afraid he doesn't understand what I'm going through.'

'What are you going through, Albus?' Scorpius asks him as he takes a step towards him again. 'We have always been able to talk about everything and we always knew what was going on inside of the other's head because we knew we could trust each other. Because we are stronger together. But you have been so closed off lately that even I don't know what's been going on inside of your head lately and it scares me.'

'I-' he struggles to find the words to say. His hands are shaking and he tries to hide it by balling them into fists at his sides. But his breathing is growing uneven as he feels his heartbeat go up. He has no idea what is happening, but his mind is racing and he has a hard time concentrating. One voice inside of his head is screaming that he should talk to Scorpius, but the other is telling him to run. To run and hide from everyone and to just be by himself. Because this is his mess, he's a mess and he should sort it out himself. He shouldn't be bothering others with it. Especially not Scorpius who has been through enough and has to deal with his own anxiety and the nightmares that he fights through every night. He turns away from Scorpius and starts to walk. 'I'm fine, Scorpius. I am. I'm just having a hard time with getting into all of this schoolwork again. I feel like I've missed a whole year of lessons and it's been stressful trying to catch up with everyone and everything again.'

Scorpius sighs as he follows Albus to the restrooms. He knows Albus is lying, but he can't force him into telling him what's going on in his mind. He knows Albus thinks he's bothering other people whenever he talks about his struggles or about himself at all. He rather fixes everything by himself without involving anyone that he cares about. That's what the whole situation with Delphi has caused. Scorpius will have to be patient but he has no idea just how long it's going to take for it all to be too much for his boyfriend. Before Albus breaks and that's what scares him the most.

* * *

Albus puts away his book as Scorpius waits for him at his own table. A tap on his shoulder makes him jump and as he turns around to see three of his classmates standing in front of him. He can feel his heartbeat go up as he looks at all three of the boys. Grey and Porter are in Gryffindor and Colin is a Slytherin, they share a dorm room. He balls his hands into fists, ready to take in whatever insult they are about to throw at him, but instead Grey, the boy in the middle, smiles at him.

'Hey Albus,' he greets him. 'We heard professor Flitwick compliment you on your homework and the way you performed in class today. Me, Grey and Porter have been struggling quite a lot during Charms class this year. As you may have already noticed,' he grinned sheepishly, referring to the feather he had burned during class. 'We were wondering if you could help us during our free period today? Maybe give us some tips on how we should use our wand?'

A light frown had appeared on Albus' forehead as he listened to Grey talking. He can't help but be a bit hesitant about saying he'll help them. Knowing that in the years he'd been at Hogwarts no other student had ever asked him for help with studying. The only person he had ever practiced and studied with is Scorpius.

'I know we haven't been the best of friends,' Colin, the Slytherin, says. He'd probably noticed that Albus was having doubts. 'But this could be a start.'

Albus nods. 'Yes, sure. Of course I'll help you.'

The three boys smile at him and Porter claps him on his shoulder. 'Thank you, Albus! We'll meet you in the corridor after lunch then.'

Albus says his goodbyes and the three boys leave. He turns on his heels to find Scorpius looking at him with raised eyebrows.

'What was that about?' he asks him as he walks toward Albus' table.

'They asked if I wanted to help them study Charms. I think we've both noticed that they aren't the best at it and they overheard professor Flitwick compliment me. So they asked for my help,' Albus answers as he swings his bag over his shoulder.

Scorpius frowns as he looks down at his boyfriend. 'Are you sure, Albus?'

'Am I sure of what? That I want to help them or if they really want my help?'

'Both?' Scorpius says.

'Scorpius, don't worry. I'm only helping them with their Charms schoolwork and that's it,' he says. 'That's it. Nothing more and nothing less. Nothing's going to happen.'

'I hope so,' Scorpius whispers, but nothing Albus says can take away the worry and doubts he's having about wether to trust his classmates.

Albus looks up at Scorpius and gives him a small smile before linking his fingers through his. He squeezes the blond boy's hand before they walk out of the classroom together. 'We will meet up later, okay? You'll see that everything will be fine.' He pulls Scorpius back, into a halt. 'Maybe this means that they will finally be kinder to us. Maybe it will get better from here.'

Scorpius can't help but smile at the hopeful look in Albus' eyes. He wants things to get better from here, for him. For Albus and for that little bit of light that is finally showing in his brown eyes.

'I'm going to kiss you,' Scorpius says softly, making sure Albus knows what's going to happen and he doesn't startle him. 'Is that alright?'

Albus arms twitch a little before slowly wrapping them around Scorpius' waist. It's a movement he would have missed if he hadn't been paying attention to Albus' every movement lately. Just that tiny moment of hesitation that Scorpius has been seeing every time he touches someone and it hurts that he's experiencing the same thing with Scorpius now. He gently cups Albus' face between his hands and caresses his cheekbones with his thumbs.

'Are you going to kiss me or do I have to come up there for you to do it?' Albus says, softly giggling at his own height joke.

Scorpius nuzzles his nose against Albus' for a second before he presses his lips on his. He feels Albus ease into his touch and his body relaxes.

'I don't know what I'd do without you,' Scorpius whispers as he pulls back for a second to look at his boyfriend again. 'God, you're so beautiful.'

Albus giggles again before standing up on his tippy toes to press his lips to Scorpius' again, but someone clears their throat and both boys jump. Albus grabs Scorpius' wrist and pulls him behind him. James is standing in the hallway. He looks from Scorpius, who is way taller, to Albus, who doesn't care about that and will still protect Scorpius from anything. His body grows tense as he sees his big brother standing in front of him and when Scorpius puts his hand on the small of his back, trying to tell Albus to relax, he moves away from it.

'Hey guys,' James smiles sheepishly at the two Slytherin boys.

Scorpius smiles back at him as he moves away from behind Albus. 'Hey James, how are you doing?'

'I'm doing fine, thank you Scorpius,' his eyes drift back towards his little brother. 'Albus, I was wondering if we could maybe talk for a bit?'

'I'm very busy,' Albus says and he wants to turn around and walk away, but Scorpius grabs his hand.

'Albus, maybe- '

'I'm going to grab some quick lunch and then meet up with the others,' he says to Scorpius as he releases his hand from Scorpius' grip. 'I'll see you later.' He presses a quick kiss to Scorpius' cheek before he rushes out of the hallway towards the Great Hall leaving his boyfriend and big brother behind.


	3. If Walls Could Talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How did the last chapter end? 
> 
> 'Hey guys,' James smiles sheepishly at the two Slytherin boys.
> 
> Scorpius smiles back at him as he moves away from behind Albus. 'Hey James, how are you doing?'
> 
> 'I'm doing fine, thank you Scorpius,' his eyes drift back towards his little brother. 'Albus, I was wondering if we could maybe talk for a bit?'
> 
> 'I'm very busy,' Albus says and he wants to turn around and walk away, but Scorpius grabs his hand.
> 
> 'Albus, maybe- '
> 
> 'I'm going to grab some quick lunch and then meet up with the others,' he says to Scorpius as he releases his hand from Scorpius' grip. 'I'll see you later.' He presses a quick kiss to Scorpius' cheek before he rushes out of the hallway towards the Great Hall leaving his boyfriend and big brother behind.

Albus walks down toward the corridor with his bag slumped over his shoulder. He had been able to get some toast into his stomach, but the nerves that he feels kept him from eating anything else. Nearly everything else he has tried to eat since he had returned to school, beside toast, had come right out again. So he tried to prevent that by just sticking to the toast that was being served every breakfast and lunch. As the nerves made his stomach flutter, he couldn't help but be hopeful. He really hoped that what he had said to Scorpius was true. That this might be the beginning of people being nice to them. He had always said that being around Scorpius was enough, that he didn't need anyone else. But deep down he just wanted people to be nice to him, to take the time to get to know him. Who he really is and not just what people think he is. Considering he had never been asked to help other students with their schoolwork, this might just be a start to him being able to hang out with more classmates. Maybe this will turn things around. Maybe this will help him feel a little better than he has been feeling recently.

Albus smiles as he sees the three boys waiting for him. They smile his way when he approaches them and Grey gives him a friendly clap on his shoulder. Lunch was over and everyone had returned to their classes or their common rooms because they have a free period. The colder weather kept the students from hanging outside in the grass and near the lake and Albus was glad he had brought his cloak with him.

'You made it!' Porter says as he adjusts his red Gryffindor tie. 'We were just talking about what we could do. We think it would be best to practice our charms with our wands instead of just practicing our stance and wand movements, which Flitwick always lets us do.'

'We feel like we're not really learning anything in class because of that. Maybe that's why we're so bad at it. I feel like I learn much more when I practice it,' Grey says as he balances his wand on his fingers.

Colin, the Slytherin, seemed awfully quiet as he watched his Gryffindor friends talk to Albus and Albus couldn't help but notice his slight discomfort in his posture.

'Are you okay, Colin?' Albus asks as he puts his bag on the floor. 'If you don't feel comfortable enough yet we could always just practice without magic. I think that might be a better idea in general, guys. We're not really allowed to perform Charms, or spells for that matter, outside of class as we don't have any supervision when something goes wrong.'

Porter rolls his eyes at Albus' comment and he can't help but feel stupid about speaking out his worries of using real magic. Afraid that they immediately think he's lame and scared that they won't want him helping them if he doesn't help them practice their magic for real. He clears his throat as he grabs his wand from his pocket.

'Alright,' he says, still unsure, but he wants his classmates to like him. He doesn't want them to think he's a loser. 'Maybe we could start with an easy spell first? What about-' but Porter interrupts him.

'We just want you to be the judge of our skills, Potter. You're a real Charms wonderboy, so maybe you could tell us if the spells work the way they're supposed to work.'

Porter raises his wand up to Albus, who immediately feels himself backing up. His eyes focused on the wand and the voice in his head screaming at him to leave, immediately. His eyes flicker from Porter and Grey grinning down at Albus to Colin who seems to avoid any eye contact at all.

'Guys, maybe we should-' Colin tries to talk to his friends but he gets cut off by Porter casting a spell.

The only thing Albus can think about with a wand pointed at him is Delphi. Delphi casting the Killing Curse at him as he emerged from a grate on the floor, back at the church in Godric's Hollow.

'Bombarda!' he calls out and points his wand to a wooden bench right behind Albus.

Delphi yelling 'I think I'll kill the boy first.' The flash of green light coming at him, his father throwing him out of the way. The explosion as the Killing Curse hit the floor. Albus flinches as the wooden bench explodes and splinters of wood rain down on him and the floor next to him. He can feel all the hope he had in his heart fade away, the hope that maybe these boys wanted to actually be friends or maybe just really wanted Albus to help him. Scorpius was right, he had been right to be worried about Albus meeting up with these boys and Albus should have known better. He should have known better that no one actually liked him and why would they? They probably just wanted to see if they could scare him or this was just for kicks, for their own fun. He had been so naive, just like he had been with Delphi. He throws his hands up as Porter raises his wand again, to point at Albus.

'Please, don't!' he called out to the boys, his voice high pitched and panicked. 'Please.'

'I would have thought that your recent adventures would have made you a bit stronger,' Grey laughs. 'I didn't think it would have actually made you this weak and scared.'

'I don't want to fight,' Albus says as he lowers his arms again. 'Just let me go.'

Grey and Porter burst out into laughter as Albus tries to reach for his bag, to leave the corridor.

'Locomotor Mortis!' Grey calls out. 'You are a disappointment to this school and the wizards that get educated here.'

Albus feels his legs go stiff as the binding spell hits him. He falls to the ground but manages to catch himself, A sharp pain shoots through his left wrist. He hisses between his teeth when he pushes himself on his back. Porter is approaching him rapidly with his wand in his hand, but Albus is faster.

'Immobulus!' he shouts and Porter stops in his tracks, unable to move. He points his wand at his own legs. 'Finite Incantatem!' His legs are free as he casts the counterspell and he scrambles to his knees. But before he can get up again, Grey is in front of him.

'Silencio!' he yells before Grey can cast any spell.

Albus raises his wand again and hisses at his painful wrist, but Grey is faster and he kicks his wand out of his hand. His eyes are burning with rage, at the fact that Albus dares to fight back at him. To take his voice away. He feels Grey's fist connect with his jaw and he falls to the ground, unable to catch himself this time. His back hits the ground and all the air is being pushed out of his lungs. He gasps for air when someone grabs the collar of his sweater and pulls him up.

Grey's face is so close to Albus' that he can feel the warmth of his breath on his face. He can his whole body shaking, his breaths are short and his head is spinning.

'Please. Stop,' Albus whispers as he tries to free himself from Grey's grip. 'Please just let me go.'

Grey laughs without making any sound, but he releases his grip on Albus' sweater. Albus stumbles back and sighs in relief when Grey turns his back on him. But before he can do anything else, Porter walks past Grey, the Immobulus Charm haven worn off, and punches Albus in his stomach. Followed by another blow to his ribs and he doubles over, clutching his stomach with both hands. Something hard hits him in the face and after another blow he falls back to the ground. He tries to make himself as small as possible, shielding his face with his arms. Knowing he won't be able to fight back. He has never been able to fight back. Not for Craig, not for Scorpius. Not against Delphi. Not against these bullies. His arms are being pulled away before something connects with his jaw again. But his vision is blurry. He has no idea if it's the tears forming in his eyes or because of his head that's spinning.

'Please,' he manages to get out, before ending up in a coughing fit. The movements made during the coughing hurt his ribs. 'Stop.'

He hears a voice shouting from a distance and the weight of the boy on Albus' body disappears. He doesn't dare to lower his arms which are still trying to protect his face and he lays as still as possible.

'Everte Statum!' an angry voice sounds again and a chill runs over Albus' back when he hears a thud to the ground. The charm that causes the victom to fly back several feet and has them experience a short, sharp pain. It's a spell that they don't learn in their year just yet, so it must be an older student.

'You better get out of here before I do much worse,' the voice shouts and it even scares Albus at how much force and anger lay in that sound.

Albus hears the quick footsteps of people running away, but he doesn't move. Footsteps approach him and he can't help but somehow expect another hit again. He can feel his body shaking and he tries to slow down his breathing. Someone gently lays a hand on Albus' shoulder and he flinches.

'Please, don't hurt me,' he whispers, his voice hoarse from the coughing.

'Al, it's me,' a soft and familiar voice sounds next to him.

'James?' Albus slowly lowers his arms and a pair of brown eyes, just like his own, are looking at him. There's anger in his eyes, but most of all, there's worry.

'Yes,' he says and the frowns on his face becomes deeper as he can see Albus' face now. 'Can you sit up?'

Albus tries his best to keep quiet as he sits up, but he can feel his bruised ribs and with every movement that he makes a sharp pain rushes through his body. 'I won't tell anyone and I don't think those guys will either. You probably embarrassed them and I'm sure they don't want to tell anyone they got their ass kicked by an older Gryffindor. So you won't get in trouble. I'm fine, you can just go back to whatever it was you were going to do.'

'I'm not going anywhere. Scorpius told me where you were going to be.' James helps him sit up. He pushes strands of hair out of his little brother's face and he gently cups his face with his hands to see how badly the injuries in his face are. He dabs at Albus' nose with his cloak as it has started bleeding. Albus hisses when he touches his jaw and nose with his fingertips. 'I'm sorry,' he whispers.

Albus looks up in his brother's face. It's scrunched up in anger looking at what those boys did to him. But there's more than just anger, there's sadness and even though James is good at hiding those emotions, Albus sees it. Because it's the same face he sees whenever he looks in the mirror. His mother had always said they looked more alike than they thought and it was now that Albus realized it might have been more true than he had thought before. James looks down, blinking his eyes rapidly, trying to get rid of the tears forming in his eyes, but Albus has already noticed. They sit in silence for a moment. Albus flinches as James stretches his arms towards Albus. He quickly holds them up in the air as a sign that he's not going to hurt him before sitting down next to Albus and gently pulling him into his arms. Albus winces from the pain and James softly apologizes. He leans into his older brother but can't help but feel uneasy at James hugging him.

'James,' he says quietly and their eyes meet again when James let's him go. 'Please don't tell anyone what happened.'

'Al, these bullies need to be punished for what they have done to you.'

'If you do that they will know that you used magic to hurt another student. I don't want that. I also don't want this to get worse. I don't want this bullying to get worse. So please, don't.'

'At least let me get you to the hospital wing, Al. You're hurting, I can see it in your eyes,' but Albus shakes his head. 'Then at least let me heal you.'

'No, thank you, James. I'm fine, honestly. I'm just going to head back to the common room. Get the blood of my face and sweater,' he looks down at his green Slytherin sweater that is now stained with blood. 'And I'm going to get some rest. I'll be fine.' He clenches his jaw as he stands up of the ground. He tries not to show that he's in pain when his brother also stands up and hands him his bag.

'Please, Al. Just let me-'

'I said I'm fine,' his voice comes out harsher than he intends it to be. 'Thank you for helping me, James.' He turns his back to his brother as he makes his way back to the dungeon. He grits his teeth and tries to take in the sharp pain surging through his ribs with every step he makes. Trying to hold back his tears. All hope that maybe his life would be different after meeting his classmates was gone. Leaving behind the feeling of complete emptiness.


	4. Jet Black Heart

Albus stumbles up the spiral staircase to his dorm room. He had been wishing with everything in him that he wouldn't run into any of his classmates or professors on the way to the Slytherin common room but he managed to avoid them as best as he could. He pushes open the door to his room with his non-injured hand. He breathes a sigh of relief when he drops his bag and closes his eyes for a moment. 

'Albus?' a soft voice sounds, but it startles Albus. 

He hadn't seen anyone inside of the room when he came in, but then again he was so focused with finally dropping the bag of his painful shoulders that he probably hadn't been paying attention. He doesn't want to turn towards Scorpius. He doesn't want the blonde boy to know what happened. What Colin, Porter and Grey have done to him. But before he can do anything, Scorpius already jumps of his bed and is making his way over to him. 

'Albus,' his voice is barely a whisper as he looks at Albus' face. His nose stopped bleeding but it left dried blood on his face and on his green Slytherin sweater. A cut on his cheekbone shows exactly where one of the boys had hit him and he had no doubts that his jaw was beginning to show bruises as well. His cloak was dirty from the floor he was laying on and his ribs hurt badly, nearly making it impossible for him to breathe normally. 'Albus, what happened?' he raises his hands towards Albus' face but Albus flinches.

'It's nothing, Scorpius. I'll be fine,' he mumbles as he tries to turn away from the boy in front of him. 

'Albus, this is not nothing!' Scorpius voice is higher than it usually is as he steps back in front of Albus. 'Did they do this to you? Colin, Porter and Grey, did they do this?' Albus stays quiet, but his silence says enough. Scorpius draws in a sharp breath, trying to get a grip on all the emotions rushing through his mind and body. Anger, sadness, disappointment. 'Let me help you,' he eventually says. Albus wants to open his mouth and Scorpius knows it's to tell him it's okay and he can do it himself, but Scorpius holds his hand up, shutting Albus up. 'Please, Al. The best thing is to go to the Hospital Wing, but I know you and you will probably refuse to go. So please let me help you.'

Albus nods as he makes his way towards his bed. He hisses through his teeth when he takes off his cloak and sits down on the bed. His arms wrapped around his upper body, begging for the pain to stop. For it all to just stop. Scorpius kneels down before him and draws his wand. 

'No magic!' Albus panicks as he sees Scorpius' wand pointing towards him. 

Scorpius quickly puts his wand away and holds his empty hands up. 'No magic!' he says as he gets up to get water and some towels to clean up the blood. 

Albus struggles to take off the green sweater and throws it to the ground when he finally manages to do so. He gently lifts up his white blouse to see what his stomach looks like. He whimpers when the bruise on his ribs shows and he draws in a deep breath. When he looks up, he sees Scorpius standing in the dooropening. His sad eyes focused on the exposed bruise on his ribs. Albus quickly let's go of the blouse and it covers up his stomach again. Scorpius stays silent as he puts an empty bucket and a bowl filled with water on Albus' nightstand and wets the towel. He can feel Albus wanting to move away as he puts his hand gently on his cheek.

'Al, I need to hold your face still so I can clean the blood of your face,' he says. He gently dabs at Albus' face and cleans off all the dried up blood. The raven-haired boy is chewing his lip as he tries to stay as still as possible. Fiddling with his hands to keep him somewhat distracted. Scorpius knows it's his way of trying to keep his emotions in check and his chest tightens at the idea of what Albus must be going through right now. 'Will you tell me what happened?'

Albus wants to open his mouth to say something, but a wave of nausea hits him. Scorpius hands him the bucket. He whimpers from the pain in his ribs when he throws up. 

'You need to lay down,' Scorpius says as he takes the bucket from Albus. 'It's your ribs. Whenever they're broken or bruised, it causes nausea. I'm going to get you some water first, okay?'

Albus nods and he closes his eyes as he puts his hands on his stomach. He's pretty sure that the nausea isn't just from his ribs. Thinking back of what just happened makes him sick, literally. The realisation that people don't actually like him, but trick him into thinking they do before crushing that last bit of hope he had... It was too much. Scorpius returns with a clean bucket and a glass of water. Albus takes it and takes a few sips before putting it on his nightstand. 

'Let me help you.' Scorpius puts Albus' legs up on the bed and helps him settle in his pillow. 'I'm going to have to unbutton your shirt to take a look at your ribs. Is that alright with you?' Albus nods and he shivers from Scorpius' cold fingers on his warm skin as he opens the blouse and looks at the bruising. 

'They said they wanted to practice Charms because they learn better when they're practicing,' Albus says and Scorpius glances up at his face. 'They said I could be the judge of their skills, that I'm a real Charms wonderboy, that I could tell if their spells had the right outcome. I was scared that if I said no, that they wouldn't like me but little did I know-' his voice fades away and he takes in a shaky breath. 'Little did I know they didn't like me anyway.'

'What happened next?' Scorpius stops examining the bruise, all of his attention focused on Albus talking.

'Porter raised his wand at me and I just froze. The only thing I saw was-' he thought of Delphi, of her casting the Killing Curse, of everything he had seen when Porter had raised his wand at him, but he can't tell Scorpius. He feels another wave of nausea come up and Scorpius quickly helps him up. Handing him the bucket. He wants to hold Albus, tell him everything's going to be alright. But the problem is, he has no idea if everything's going to be alright. Ever.

'I managed to slow Porter down and used Silencio on Grey to make sure he couldn't cast any spells. But he didn't care about that. He didn't need his wand, as you can see from my face and the beautiful blue painting on my ribs,' he laughs, but there's no joy in that sound and a chill goes down Scorpius' spine. 

'How did you get out of there?' 

'James was there. He chased them away. He said you told him I was going to be there,' Albus looks at Scorpius, who's cheeks are flushed. 'It's alright, Scorpius. Thanks to you he found me, it's alright.'

The blonde boy looks back at the bruise and gently brushes his fingers over it. Albus' body goes rigid. 

'I'm going to need to use magic, Albus. I know you don't want me to, but I'm going to have to if you won't go to the Hospital Wing. I won't let you walk around with this pain for the next few weeks. Stay completely still.'

Albus closes his eyes and clenches his jaw as Scorpius gets his wand. He whispers the Episkey charm and a warm glow spreads over Albus' body. It didn't come as a surprise to Albus that Scorpius knows healing charms even though they hadn't learned it in class yet. He always says Scorpius will make for a great Healer in the future. 

'I'm so sorry, Al. I know you were excited about the fact that they asked you to help them. I could see it in your eyes, that spark of hope. I'm so sorry that this happened,'

Albus is chewing on his bottom lip again, his eyes now focused on the ceiling of the bed. 'It's nothing I haven't experienced before. It's what they do, for the fun.' He pushes himself up from the bed. He stands up and stretches his arms and neck. The pain in his ribs has been reduced to a dull ache and he has no doubts that Scorpius was able to heal the injuries in his face completely. 

'It has never been this bad,' Scorpius puts his wand away and gets up from the bed. 'I'm sorry that I wasn't there to help you. To protect you.'

Albus turns away from Scorpius but the blonde gently grabs his arm. 

'Please don't shut me out,' he whispers as he stands in front of his boyfriend. He cups Albus' face with his hands and for a moment Albus eases into his touch. But it doesn't take long for Albus to step back and pretend to be looking for a new shirt to put on. Scorpius' hands fall to his sides and with sad eyes he looks at Albus. He's so close when speaking in terms of distance, but his mind was too far away and Scorpius couldn't reach him. He always knew how to pull Albus back from his dark thoughts. He knew Albus better than himself. But right now, he has no idea how to reach him anymore.


	5. Moving Along

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How did the last chapter end?
> 
> 'It has never been this bad,' Scorpius puts his wand away and gets up from the bed. 'I'm sorry that I wasn't there to help you. To protect you.'
> 
> Albus turns away from Scorpius but the blonde gently grabs his arm. 
> 
> 'Please don't shut me out,' he whispers as he stands in front of his boyfriend. He cups Albus' face with his hands and for a moment Albus eases into his touch. But it doesn't take long for Albus to step back and pretend to be looking for a new shirt to put on. Scorpius' arms fall to his sides and with sad eyes he looks at Albus. He's so close when speaking in terms of distance, but his mind was too far away and Scorpius couldn't reach him. He always knew how to pull Albus back from his dark thoughts. He knew Albus better than himself. But right now, he has no idea how to reach him anymore.

Scorpius looks down at his feet while walking down the stone hallways of the castle. His bag is hanging from his shoulder and he's wringing his hands as he whispers to himself, trying to find the right words to say. He has been thinking of speaking to Rose or James for a while now, but hasn't had the courage to walk up to them yet. He had no idea what he'd say as he had no idea how they'd react to him approaching them. Especially as they were at school and there were lots of other students around. He wouldn't want to put them in that position. Thereby he wasn't sure if he'd be able to handle being rejected by one of them. 

'Come on, Scorpius. Get yourself together,' he grumbled to himself.

'Are you talking to yourself?' a familiar voice disturbs his whispers and he whips around to find Rose standing behind him. With her arms full of books and a heavy bag over her shoulders she looks at Scorpius with a frown on her face. 

He is sure his face is flushed and bright red right now. He tries to answer but instead just starts stumbling on the words that come out of his mouth. 

'It doesn't matter,' she says, pulling him out of his misery. 'I'm glad I ran into you. I had been meaning to look for you after my study session. I wanted to talk to you.'

'You? Wanted to talk? To me?' he asks her, surprised and shocked at the same time. 

'Yes, are you in a hurry?'

Scorpius shakes his head. They didn't have any more classes that day and he had been walking around the castle ever since they finished the last class. Thinking about what to do, how to approach Rose or James and how he could help Albus. 

'I just really want to tell you that I'm sorry, Scorpius. I'm sorry for ignoring you, for dismissing you almost immediately in the train before even getting to know you. I'm sorry for the way I have been treating you. I had been so consumed by my own fear of ending up alone, not being the best I can possibly be, that I didn't realize how horrible I had been towards Albus and especially you. I turned into someone that I despised and maybe I'm too late now, but I really wanted to apologize to you,' she had been looking Scorpius in the eye all this time, which showed him that she meant every word that she was saying and he admired her bravery. 'I do not expect you to forgive me nor do I expect you to start talking to me or anything else. I just wanted to get this off my chest because I have been treating you wrongfully and I think you deserve an apology.' 

'Thank you,' Scorpius said with a genuine smile on his face. It couldn't be easy for someone to admit they had been wrong for such a long time. To take that step after years and he appreciated that. 'I really do appreciate that. I don't blame you for keeping your distance and for not wanting to really hang out with me with, you know,' he waves his hands around. 'With the rumor that was going around about me. But-' 

'No,' Rose dismisses him, placing her hand gently on his arm. 'No, that does not dismiss that what I did wasn't right, nor do I want that. I should have never been that mean to you. My parents didn't raise me like that. I didn't know you and I should have never judged you. You didn't start those rumors. You were the victim of them. Of the people that started it. You should have never taken the blame for it. No one deserves to become subject of the cruelty of the world in such a way. You were, and still are, just a kid Scorpius.'

For a moment Scorpius just stands there, as if he is made out of stone. Not being able to find the right words to respond to what Rose just said. His father had always told him to try and ignore the rumors, to not respond to them. That they weren't true and he shouldn't pay any attention to it. Albus had always told him that the rumors weren't his fault. That it was horrible that people would do such thing to a kid. But hearing it from someone else than his best friend, his boyfriend, seemed different. Somehow it got to him even more and yes, he was and is still just a kid. And yes, he should have never had to go through what he had gone through. What he's still going through. His eyes find Rose's again and she gives him a small smile. 

'I'm sorry,' Scorpius whispers. 'I just don't know what to say. I just- Thank you, Rose. Thank you.'

'It's no problem. I'm just going to head on to the library to study some more. I will see you around, okay?' 

Scorpius nods and flashes her a smile. She gives him a friendly squeeze before she passes him, on her way to the library.

'Wait, Rose!' he calls out to her again as he turns around. 'There is something I wanted to talk to you about. I have been wanting to talk to you or James for a while now, but I was too scared of what you would do or how you would react to that. Normally people turn right back around when I approach them and sometimes they just laugh in my face, so I got kind of nervous to seek any of you out, but now that you're here,' he waves his hand her way before pointing at himself. 'And I'm here, I wanted to ask if you have a few minutes to talk?'

'Yes, of course. You can join me to the library. We can talk there, if you want to?' she suggests and nods her head to the end of the hallway. 'What did you want to talk about?' 

'Albus,' Scorpius wrings his hands as he thinks of his boyfriend. 'I want to talk about Albus. He's been getting worse and I'm afraid something horrible might happen.'

'I just really don't know what to do anymore,' Scorpius sighs as he lets his head fall in his hands. 

'I assume you've tried talking to him, right?' 

'Yes, I have tried to talk to him multiple times. Sometimes it's like he's finally starting to open up, but then he shuts down. In the beginning he'd talk to me,' Scorpius says, his voice muffled because of his hands. 'But now he barely answers me whenever I ask him something.' He looks up at Rose. 'I begged him to please not shut me out, but he just looked at me. He looked at me. His eyes were so sad, so lost. It was almost like he couldn't reply. It makes me feel so worthless, so helpless. I want to help him so badly. I can't lose him, Rose. I don't know if I can handle that. I can't lose him.' 

Rose leans over the table, taking Scorpius' hands in hers. She squeezes them softly as she looks at him. 'Scorpius, you're not going to lose him. I haven't been the best cousin and friend for him, but I promise I will try my best to fix it. I have talked to a few Gryffindors already, I told them to stop. Polly Chapman has already admitted that they have gone way too far.'

'I didn't know you spend so much time with Polly Chapman,' Scorpius says with raised eyebrows. 

'I didn't in the past few years. It's honestly just the last few months,' Rose looks at her hands, blushing hard. 'I know what she has put you two through, but she says she's genuinely sorry about it. She feels bad about everything she has said about you two.'

'Rose Granger-Weasley,' Scorpius says as he smiles at her. 'Are you blushing?' 

Rose scrunches her nose and shrugs. 'It's nothing honestly. Thereby we came here to talk about Albus. What do we do now? Do we talk to him?' 

'I think someone needs to know what's going on. An adult,' Scorpius says. 'I think I'm going to pay professor Longbottom a visit. He knows Albus and his family. Maybe he'll be able to help us. I'm afraid that if we don't tell anyone that he will just get worse and worse. I do not want that to happen, knowing I might have been able to prevent it.'

Rose nods. 'Do you want me to go with you?'

Scorpius shakes his head. 'No, I'll go talk to him. I'll go talk to him right now,' Scorpius stands up and smiles at Rose. 'I really do appreciate all of your words, Rose. I think it would be a good thing if you and Albus made up.' 


	6. Better Man

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How did the last chapter end?
> 
> 'I think someone needs to know what's going on. An adult,' Scorpius says. 'I think I'm going to pay professor Longbottom a visit. He knows Albus and his family. Maybe he'll be able to help us. I'm afraid that if we don't tell anyone that he will just get worse and worse. I do not want that to happen, knowing I might have been able to prevent it.'
> 
> Rose nods. 'Do you want me to go with you?'
> 
> Scorpius shakes his head. 'No, I'll go talk to him. I'll go talk to him right now,' Scorpius stands up and smiles at Rose. 'I really do appreciate all of your words, Rose. I think it would be a good thing if you and Albus made up.'

Polly walks down the staircase leading up to the girl's dormitory, entering the common room. The common room is empty except for one person. Rose is sitting in a big chair in front of the fireplace, a blanket wrapped around her shoulder and her eyes focused on the book in her lap. Polly lets out an exaggerated sigh as her bare feet touch the stone floor. She walks toward Rose, welcomed by the warmth of the burning fire. She bends over the back of the chair and buries her face in Rose's neck. 

'How long are you going to stay up to read?' she asks, her voice muffled. 'I need attention.'

Rose chuckles but doesn't look up from her book. Her eyes following every line she reads, trying to memorize it in her brain. 'I need to get this reading done before tomorrow.'

Polly looks up, glancing to the clock on the wall. 'Rose, it's after midnight. Class is already in about 8 hours and the only thing that you need to do,' she asks while wrapping her arms around Rose's shoulders. 'Is give your girlfriend some attention.'

Rose smiles. 'I thought you were going to say that I need sleep.'

'Yes,' Polly says innocently as she shrugs. 'You can sleep after you have given met the attention that I desperately need.'

'You are unbelievable,' Rose whispers as she carefully closes her book and places it on the table next to her chair. She looks up at Polly who is still leaning over the back of the chair. 'You know that?'

The dark haired witch gets up and looks at her girlfriend, her face shocked. 'Me? Unbelievable?'

Rose shakes her head as she extends her arms toward Polly, who happily grabs both her hands. She pulls her in her lap and wraps the blanket around the both of them. 

Polly wraps her arms around Rose's neck as she locks eyes with her. 'I could sit here all day,' she whispers as she rests her forehead against Rose's temple. 'Just looking at you.'

'If you're quiet, I can get some more reading done. After that you can chat all you want,' Rose says. She reaches for her book again but Polly grabs her hand. 

'I know something better,' she whispers as she cups Rose's face with her hands. Rose looks at her with raised eyebrows, a questioning look in her eyes. But before she can say anything Polly gently presses her lips on hers. Rose's breath gets stuck in her throat before she eases into the kiss. Wrapping her own arms around Polly's waist, pulling her as close as she can. 

'And?' Polly grins as she can see Rose's flustered cheeks. 

'Almost as good as reading a book,' Rose answers, out of breath. Kissing Polly never gets old. The girl always knows how to take her breath away. It doesn't matter what she does. She could just be walking into the Great Hall for breakfast, her hand could brush Rose's while walking or she could be kissing Rose. It would always leave her breathless. Breathless and wanting more. 

'You're getting all red,' Polly giggles, her breath tickles the skin on Rose's face as she brushes her lips against Rose's cheek.  
'It's the blanket and the fire,' Rose mumbles as she throws off the blanket. 'And your body warmth is just only making it worse.' 

'Sure babe,' Polly laughs as she pecks Rose's cheeks and gets up from her lap. 'I'll just let you read some more. I'll be upstairs if you need me.' 

The dark haired girl turns around and Rose looks at her as she walks towards the spiraling staircase. Her heart is beating in her chest and she clenches her jaw. Rose knows she couldn't go back to reading anymore, she wouldn't remember a word and Polly knows that as well. She jumps up from the couch, rushing after her girlfriend. As she grabs her hand and twirls her around, Polly lets out a surprised noise. Rose wraps her arm around her waist again as she puls her close and with her other hand in her neck, she presses her lips on Polly's again. She feels her girlfriend's hands on her hips as they make their way up to her arms, eventually resting them on either side of her face. 

'Uh, is this like a bad timing?' a voice sounds from behind the girls. 

Both of them jump at the interruption and break apart. James is standing on the bottom step of the staircase that leads to the boys dorms. Rose crosses her arms in front of her as James raises his eyebrows.

'I'm just gonna go upstairs and go to bed,' Polly mumbles. She smiles at Rose before she quickly walks up the stairs. 

Rose waits until she can hear the door of their dorm room close before she speaks. 'What do you want, James?' she asks harshly. 'Why are you up?'

'I couldn't sleep so I thought I'd just come down here to sit in front of the fireplace. Why are you still up?'

'I was studying.'

'Studying Polly Chapman's lips?' he asks with a grin on his face. 

Rose let out a frustrated sigh as she walked back to grab her book and blanket. 'Please, don't tell anyone just yet. It's all pretty new to me.'

James leans against the wall as he looks at his cousin. 'Why would I tell anyone?'

'Because you're James!' Rose says as she whips around and looks at him again. 'Because you're James and you like to joke and mess around. You do it to Albus and Scorpius all of the time. I don't need that in my life right now. I have enough on my mind as it is already.'

James' grin disappears from his face. 'How is Albus?' his voice is soft and his shoulders slump. Rose can't help but be surprised at how worried he looks and how his tough exterior and strong posture completely wash away as soon as she mentions his little brother. 'Have you spoken to him lately?'

Rose looks down at her hands and shakes her head. 'No, he still doesn't want to talk to me. Have you?' 

James shakes his head as well. 'No, he doesn't talk to me either. Every time I see him in the hallway he turns around or quickly rounds another corner. Whenever I enter the Great Hall, he gets up and leaves, doesn't matter if he has finished his food or not. The last time I spoke to him was when he was getting bullied and physically abused by Porter, Grey and a Slytherin student. He didn't want my help and told me he was fine.'

'They did WHAT?' Rose's eyes are burning with rage and it reminds James of aunt Hermoine. 

'They asked him for his help on studying Charms. They tricked him and used his kind nature against him. Of course he wasn't going to say no to them, he wanted to help them. They then attacked him. First it was with magic but then it became physical. Rose, he looked so vulnerable when I got there. Laying on the floor, his arms up to his face to protect himself as best as he could. They beat him up pretty badly as well, but he wouldn't let me take him to the hospital wing or let me heal him. Now every time I close my eyes I see him laying there on the ground. My little brother.'

'I talked to Scorpius the other day and he says Albus has been really closed off lately. He keeps zoning out whenever he's in class or when he's eating and Scorpius can't get through to him when it happens. It's like he doesn't hear him, like in his head he's somewhere else. Whenever someone touches him, he moves away almost immediately. I have been keeping an eye on him in class and I can see it. He looks so tired, James.'

James lets out a deep sigh and buries his face in his hands. 'I have been a horrible brother to him, Rose. I really have been a horrible brother -' Rose opens her mouth to say something, but James holds up his hand to stop her. 'Please don't try to make me feel better. I know what I've done and I know I meant it as a joke and to tease Albus, but he took it hard. I never meant for this to happen.'

'We have all made mistakes. Back in our first year, I was so worried on who to be friends with. I shouldn't have left Albus on his own. I shouldn't have cared about choosing my friends as much as I did. I should have been there for him. Support him. Stand up for him whenever he was bullied. Instead I lost myself in my own fear of not being good enough and not having enough friends. I know that now and maybe it's too late, but that doesn't mean I can't try and make up for it.'

'I didn't see how badly he was struggling all this time and then all of a sudden he was gone. He had ran away and no one knew where he went,' James sat down at the chess table. His hands in his hair, staring at the play board. 'I have never been as scared as I was in that moment. I had no idea what to do. Our parents were all out there looking for him and I couldn't do a thing, except for checking to see if he had returned to Hogwarts. Every single day.'

'James, you should be telling Albus this. Not me,' she puts her hand on his arm and gives him a sympathetic smile. 'It seems like this has been weighing on you a lot and you should get it off your chest. But I think Albus also needs to hear this as well. I know you have never been that close, but you're both suffering from this.' 

James nods. 'I know. You're right. I should be telling him this, but I'm not sure if he'd want to listen.'

'I think Albus really needs his big brother and I think you need your little brother as well. Why don't you try talking to him after classes end?'

'I will,' he says. 'Thank you, Rose. I appreciate it.'

Rose gets up, hugging her book to her chest while pulling her blanket along with her. She had her left foot on the first step of the staircase when James called out to her again.

'Rose?' 

'Do you think I'm a bad person?' he asks, chewing on his bottom lip. His hands are fidgeting and only now does Rose see just how much James and Albus look alike when they're anxious. James is just better at hiding it, behind the mask of jokes and sarcasm.

'No, James. I don't think you're a bad person,' he looks up and the same brown eyes that Albus has look at her, eyes filled with sadness, worry and pain. 'I don't think you're a bad person at all. You're just bad at opening up to people and showing you're emotions. You hide behind your mask of jokes and sarcasm but deep down inside you're hurting. You don't have to hide. Not anymore.' 

He turns his face away when she says that and she knows he's hiding the fact that his eyes are tearing up. She quickly walks over to him, wrapping her free arm around his shoulders. 

'I know we're Gryffindors and we're supposed to be the brave ones. But it's okay to be scared and it's okay to be sad. Your family is here to help you through those moments. Don't shut us out. Okay?' she whispers and he nods. She presses a kiss on the top of his head before she walks back toward the staircase. 'Goodnight James.'

'Goodnight Rose.'


End file.
